A small number of original Sakae powerplants are on display in aviation museums, usually mounted into the airframes of restored Mitsubishi A6M Zeros - only one airworthy Zero worldwide still flies with a restored Sakae powerplant, the Planes of Fame Museum's A6M5 example, bearing tail number "61-120".[3][4]

USS Suwannee after the Kamikaze attack of 25 October 1944. Parts of the A6M5 Kamikaze-Zero's Nakajima Sakae 21, 14-cylinder radial engine were found in the vicinity of the hit. Cylinder heads are destroyed, connecting rods and crankshaft are visible.